From Sunset to Sunrise on the Summit of Aragats

• peaksam July 27, 2025October 3, 2026

Just a few days before climbing Mount Ararat, we decided to organize a preparatory overnight stay, not near Lake Kari as everyone usually does, but right on the South summit of Aragats, at an altitude of 3,887 m. We knew very well what a challenge altitude and the effect of lack of oxygen are, especially for children. That’s why it was important to do everything we could so that the body would gradually get used to it and endure the altitude of Ararat. After all, on Ararat we were facing a long ascent above 4,100 m, including an “overnight stay”.

Our goal was clear: to climb Ararat not as fast as possible, but as healthy, strong and well as possible. That’s why, as preparation for the Ararat ascent, we made a series of difficult and demanding ascents, the most special and difficult of which was the overnight stay on the South summit.

Many will ask: “What was so difficult about that?”
The answer is very simple: try climbing all the way to the summit with all the heavy gear needed for an overnight stay, and then spend the night at that altitude, in conditions of cold, wind and lack of oxygen. Especially keeping in mind that all of this was being done by children.

This ascent was also special because we didn’t start walking early in the morning, but in the evening, at 16:00. We had chosen that time on purpose, so that we would reach the summit when other groups had already gone down, and we could set up the tents calmly, without disturbing anyone.

Despite the challenges of altitude and the heavy loads, the children set off toward the summit with unwavering enthusiasm. When we reached the top, Aragats was completely flooded with the wonderful colors of the sunset: yellow, pink, warm orange, a real painting that nature itself was drawing for us. But we didn’t get carried away admiring it: we had to manage to set up the tents before it got dark and cold. And, as unbelievable as it may seem, we managed to set up ten tents on the rocky summit of Aragats.

The night was cold, harsh and silent, and in the morning we were greeted by the sun rising under a pinkish sky. We woke up, enjoyed the pleasant silence of the mountain (which at dawn was periodically broken by the ascents of other groups preparing for Ararat) and the warming rays of the sun, had breakfast, packed up our high mountain camp and started to descend.

In the morning, everyone’s good condition was saying one thing: the Ararat ascent is going to be a success.